Summer Endorsements

How to have it made in the shade

Editor’s Note: This newsletter has been edited from its original version to make a correction. See note below in text where the edit was made.

For new subscribers… I usually write about figure skating, but sometimes I write about other things. Today is one of those times! But you’ll find three figure skating tidbits at the end, so you can scroll ahead if you’re so inclined.

I have Seasonal Affect Disorder, except it’s in the summer. Some people get depressed in the sunless winter; I get depressed when the sun tries to kill me for three to four months. I try to get into the spirit of things, but I’m just not built for heat. On a recent family beach trip, I gamely slathered on sunscreen and marched down to sit under an umbrella and pretended having sand all over my legs didn’t bother me. I lasted two days. By Day 3, I had an angry, itchy rash around my neck; I am actually allergic to summer. Back to the air conditioned condo.

By August, I’m grumpy and defeated and concerned about the amount of poison I’m spraying on my body to fend off aggressive mosquitos. Then, miraculously, the first crisp morning in late September dawns, and it’s like I’ve started anti-depressants. Summer is just not my friend.

Here’s some things that have helped this season:

(Note: I don’t use affiliate links, so I’m not getting any kickbacks for any of this. I really do like this stuff.)

Coolibar SPF shirts: There are tons of spf shirt options out there. I like the Coolibar Rhodes button-up shirt because the fabric is really lightweight and breathable, it’s a nice length, and it’s roomy enough to throw over a sundress to cover your shoulders and back. They seem to be having a half-off summer sale on some colors right now, so it’s a good time to try them out if you don’t mind wearing royal blue or magenta. I have the minty mist one, and I wear it everywhere.

Zevo Flying Insect Trap If my air conditioned home is going to be my summer oasis, then I have to guard against flies of all kinds— fruit flies, house flies, rogue mosquitos… anything with wings. My 8 lb schnauzer, fearless in the face of the neighbor’s growling German shepherd, is TERRIFIED by small flying bugs. She whines and hides under my bed, which is actually a welcomed reprieve sometimes. But I’m not wild about finding dead fruit flies in my crispy cold Chardonnay. This blue light sticky trap works much better than the apple cider vinegar traps I used to rig up, and it doubles as a nightlight!

Trader Joe’s Jalepeno Limeade Just because I don’t want to sit by the pool, doesn’t mean I don’t want a pool adjacent drink. This scratches my margarita itch. It’s a little too sweet and sugary for me, so I usually mix it with a ton of ice and some Topo Chico— about one part Limeade to three parts Topo— but I think any plain seltzer could work. If I’m feeling fancy, I give it a chili-lime seasoning rim. If I’m feeling dangerous, I add a shot of Tequila. If I’m feeling whimsical, I add an umbrella. Perfect summer drink.

megababe Thigh Rescue mini size If your thighs don’t touch, just move along here. How nice for you. For everyone else, you know the only drawback to summer caftans is chub rub. I’ve previously used and liked the Thigh Rescue shorts, but I can’t bear wearing another layer in the summer. I have these travel size anti-friction sticks in every purse. They don’t take up much space, the formula lasts a long time before re-application is needed, and they look like cute little deodorant sticks if they fall out of your bag at an inopportune time.

Atmosphere by Taylor Jenkins Reid This isn’t a revolutionary statement, but I loved this book. So does just about every book influencer you’ve run across lately. But sometimes things are popular for a good reason. It comes down to the main character, Joan, for me. I find her so aspirational. Not because she’s an astronaut— because I am actually terrified of space and almost refused to read this on those grounds. But because she is wholesome and kind and genuinely so INTO things, and these wonderful qualities lead her to professional success and found family and true love. I want to be the Joan of whatever I do. I snapped a photo of this passage early in the book because I didn’t have a highlighter:

And on that note… I also can’t stop thinking about the tweet:

So, in the spirit of cultivating interests, here’s Three Figure Skating Things:

• Alexa Knierim had her baby and named it Braxton Hicks. I mean, she named it Braxton Jeffery. I wonder if they purposefully sought out a name with an “x” in it so it could sound like her name. Meanwhile, Alexa has plenty of time to pull together some passable Olympic programs, IF SHE WANTS TO.

• Are you listening to The Runthrough Lore episodes? I know I mentioned them last week, but I’ll mention them again because they get better and better. My new favorite TV show is combing through the YouTube playlists they put together. I particularly enjoy the broadcast profiles from the 80s-90s. Skaters of that era, particularly the Russian skaters, really would say anything to a camera. Here’s Torvill and Dean not-very-convincingly denying a romantic relationship. Here’s Anthony Ponomarenko’s parents’ coach talking shit about them. And here’s Oksana/Pasha Grishuk enthusiastically imitating Marilyn Monroe for American TV, while also talking shit… specifically about Oksana Baiul.

  

• Olympic season program announcements are trickling out. Most of the Japanese stars already announced theirs, as they usually debut them at summer shows. But many of the other top tier skaters sit on their programs for as long as possible. A recent one that slipped through: Daniel Grassl, controversial Italian singles skater, will skate to the soundtrack from Conclave. Supposedly, he will skate in character as a Cardinal, though his coach says it will be respectful. (Suuuuure.) Meanwhile, that one enthusiastic Pope Conclave Twitter account got hyped at the news until a bunch of skating fans were like, “nooooo… he’s problematic, you should like these other skaters who don’t actually have anything to do with the pope.” Pope Crave gamely played along, but you can sort of imagine the person behind the account sighing heavily and being like, “Fine, Deniss V is talented, and artistic, but I think you’re missing the point that I’m actually here for Pope jokes.” (Editor’s note: The original edition of this newsletter said, “…talented, artistic, and queer…” It’s been called to my attention that Deniss has never publicly come out. This is an honest error on my part— I misremembered something I read about him years ago. I am sorry for not getting my facts right the first time!)

What’s next: More summer skating news updates… and some more non-skating content with a mid-year reading report.